Phyllis Brinkerhoff wants just one thing: For everyone to love the Hokey Pokey as much as she does.
The 93-year-old Prairie Village, Kansas, resident adores the song, telling CBS News it's "fun" and "joyous." She gave her neighbor, Melanie Mendrys, a CD featuring the bop, and regularly checked in to see if she'd turned her into a fan. "I just would always say, 'Not quite yet,'" Mendrys said.
Brinkerhoff — who told CBS News she finds it "very amazing" that not everyone enjoys the Hokey Pokey — got used to the idea that Mendrys may not become the song's No. 1 fan. She didn't know, however, that Mendrys was planning something for her 93rd birthday. Mendrys invited their neighbors to stand outside of Brinkerhoff's house so they could all surprise her by doing the Hokey Pokey dance together. On the big day, the flash mob gathered on Brinkerhoff's lawn to Hokey Pokey — and of course, she joined in, too. "The smile on her face was so big," Mendrys said. "It doesn't take that much to make someone's day."
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